Ramblings about knitting, life, exploits, and other things.

September 2012

September 28, 2012

It's not good to be a car around here. Bad things seem to be happening to cars.

I'm hoping, for my local friends' sakes, that my car's recent experience marks the third that ends the cycle, but it might be only number two.

Incident number one: the Divine though Blogless Elizabeth's husband's car was having parking brake issues. The brake was being temperamental, and was prone to bailing while in use. So... while they waited for that magic window to fix it, her husband (He Who Maintains the ShadowLand Network), wisely (?) parked the car in the street instead of the driveway. His logic was that doing so would prevent any incidents in which the parking brake decided to go on break during the night, allowing the car to roll peacefully down the driveway into the street and into the path of an oncoming car.

Alas, some one drove along that street one night without bothering with the niceties of lane usage, and crashed mightily into the poor car. The car was totaled. (At least that was the insurance company's determination). While we all love having new cars, few of us enjoy the forced quest to find one with no warning. This meant days, maybe weeks, (it felt to her like weeks, maybe months) during which they had but one car in a two-car household where one of the drivers had to use the car for work all the time.

Incident number two: another member of the weekly knit night gang took her car in for brake-work that involved flushing the brake system and getting yummy new brake fluid. Not long after, the brakes failed utterly. Luckily, her husband was driving to the brake shop at the time, and no one was hurt. But -- they discovered that the brake fluid had been contaminated with something. This ultimately led to replacing practically the entire brake-line system. And days... actually a bit over a week, during which the car was in the shop. Again... putting a strain on the household transportation.

Enter us, for incident three: Kitty drove Bookworm downtown to go shopping in the vintage stores on Sunday afternoon. A lovely outing for the two of them. She parked the car in a municipal lot, locked it and went in to enjoy the shopping. When they returned, they found that the side of the car looked like this:

(That's actually three pics, in an effort to show the full extent of the damage).

Evidently, someone thought that the car was in the way of whatever they were doing. They can't possibly have missed that they'd hit something. They managed to damage every quarter panel on that side of the car. The tape is there so that if I get caught in the rain, I won't immediately toast all the electrical stuff inside that door panel.

I repeat to myself this mantra: No one was hurt. Nothing has happened that money can't fix. No one was hurt. You're insured. No one was hurt.

While the mantra does help my blood pressure, it does not changes the fact that there was over $6,500 in damage to the car, or that it will take a minimum of 12 (twelve) (TWELVE) business days (twelve business days!!!) to repair the damage. That means that no matter how we sliced it, the car will be in the shop over two weekends too. The car goes in on the 4th. I asked the fellow to see if there was any way that it could be done so that I'd have it on my birthday (the 20th) instead of having to wait until the 22nd to pick it up. In the mean time, those open spaces on the doors:

mean that the doors don't close all the way, and thus I can't drive if there's a risk of rain, or the damage to the interior will make things even more difficult (and expensive) (and take longer).

Deep sigh.

It does not pay to be a car in this town.

On the other hand, some cars get better decorations than others. Mine, as you can see, has knitting geek racing stripes (for those not in the know, SSK is an abbreviation for a decrease in knitting that slants up and to the left). Others get puns of a different flavor:

September 27, 2012

Saturday, I traded massages with one of my almost classmates from Massage School. I was in the "Day Class" and she was in the "Night Class" (they also met on Saturday mornings...).

She agreed to be my guinea pig for the grape seed oil.

Grape seed oil.... that's a lot of seeds for oil. I mean with apricot pits, we know they're pretty big. But grape seeds? wow. SO tiny. (If I see celery seed oil as an option out there, I may just freak out).

I googled grape seed oil, to see what I could learn.

Wikipedia tells me that it is a by-product of wine making; that it is higher in linoleic acid than many other carrier oils (oils used, for example, to "carry" essential aromatherapy oils - which are too strong to use undiluted); and that it's sometimes used as a shaving lubricant. They don't tell me much about how it's made. (They also tell me it's good for cooking and has a high smoke-point, but that's not why I'm here).

Other googling tells me that one uses an oil expeller, but I didn't dig hard enough to find out how those work. There is also, evidently a chemical method out there. I got enough to know that I'm unlikely to be making my own grape seed oil any time soon -- and that many wineries actually do make their own.

Anyway, I gave my friend a massage with the grape seed oil. It's thicker than the Apricot Seed, but not as thick as the jojoba. That thickness meant that it was a bit slicker, and thus better for gliding strokes than the apricot, but not as good for deeper work. Of course, as with all oils, some of that depends simply on how much you use.

It's clear that I'll have to do an oil-off once I've tried them all once. I'm ranking them, sort of. But in the end, I'll have to retry them all to compare the ones I've liked with each other KNOWING what I thought of the others.

September 25, 2012

I'm fully over the delusion that I can knit a pair of socks in a week. Even though it is the only knitting I've been doing for the past few weeks, I've still not finished Golf Pro's socks.

I won't even pretend that I could have finished them had they been for me.... it's gone on far too long for that, and his feet aren't THAT much bigger than mine.

However, I have turned the heel,

finished all gusset shaping, and am now merrily working my way up the calf. They will end when I don't have enough yarn for two more rounds. (Okay, there will be ribbing, but still, I'm basically going until I run out of yarn).

I'm still rather amazed at how long they're taking. Especially now, when the only fiddly bits are one measly cable per sock. Perhaps this is evidence that I knit faster on dpns? (I'm using the two socks on two circs method -- not my usual approach).

September 19, 2012

Monday, I interviewed a new oil: Apricot Kernel oil. As it happens, I have this oil from two different sources. One vial comes from WellSpring (whom I mentioned here, in my first oil interview post). The other comes from our local whole foods co-op (and no, I don't mean Whole Foods the chain, just a local co-op that sells whole foods).

I tried the local sourced oil first. I found that I liked it much better to work with than the jojoba oil. Much lighter, and yet fully lubricating to the skin. Though it seemed to soak in and be absorbed by my client's skin fairly quickly, I found that it continued to allow sufficient glide for me to give a good massage without any pulling.

I did note that the oil on my client's back had been all but fully absorbed in the time it took me to massage her legs, and have her turn over. It was no longer possible to work under her body (thus revisiting some of the tight shoulder muscles) without applying more oil. This is a good and not so good thing. It means that the oil is being absorbed happily by her skin, and will not leave her feeling greasy; but it means I have to use a bit more for certain techniques. On the whole, I find it a good thing.

Yesterday, I followed up by using the Apricot Kernel Oil I'd gotten from WellSpring. I was particularly interested in comparing these two oils, since the main difference was source, and not substance.

I found the WellSpring oil to be much the same as the oil from the local purveyor. Again, light touch, easy absorption, but good lubrication. I particularly like that it's not so slippery that you can't get any traction, but it's slippery enough for long smooth strokes. The main difference in my experience was in the bottle caps! And that -- is fully controllable by me. After all, once I'm really working, I'll be buying oil by the quart to dispense into whatever working container I choose, not by the 2 oz bottle.

If feels good to make progress. Of the collection of eleven massage oil/lotion options in my massage room (okay, thirteen if we count things for which I have multiple sources for the same single element oil), I've ruled one out completely, found one severely wanting, and liked two (three if you count double sourcing).

Meanwhile, I'm still studying furiously. I'm simultaneously amazed by how much I've learned about anatomy, physiology and pathology -- and stunned by how much we didn't cover thoroughly (or at all), that I'm having to learn for the exam. This week, I'm trying to cram into my full brain the names of each of the bones in our wrists and ankles. Evidently, it is insufficient to just know that they are carpal and tarsal bones. On the other hand, I'm guessing that, exam review book aside, we don't really need to be able to identify all of the tubercles, lines, ridges, crests, condyles, fossas etc. on every bone. But I'm trying to make sure that I'll at least recognize them as such if they show up on the test.

September 17, 2012

Who knew that simply inputting a bunch of data about my reading history, current reading, and reading plans would reveal so much to me? Sure, I expected to see patterns in my reading. There are patterns everywhere.

And I expected to see cycles in my reading; I tend to do all sorts of things in cycles. You can tell this simply by observing my home. At one end of the cleaning cycle, I'm uber diligent, and dust and clean up, and tidy, and scrub toilets and sinks frequently. Then, over time, the frequency diminishes, and one by one the tasks fall by the way side (vacuuming the stairs goes first, then dusting....). Until suddenly, I look around me and am appalled. The same cycle is clearly visible on my desk. Those two cycles only rarely have anything to do with each other. (And if you're going to tell me that your house doesn't have such cycles, I'm going to ask you who your cleaning service is.)

Similarly, I tend to go for a while reading the books that Golf Pro has checked out of the library, and enjoying crime fiction for a while. Then I slowly start adding more fantasy to my reading pile, and veer off into whatever the kids are reading. Then I'll find a series (usually fantasy, but sometimes historical fiction like Diana Gabaldon's exquisitely delicious Outlander series). Then I'll swing back to reading with Golf Pro.

In the middle, I usually have some sort if interesting non-fiction book in the bathroom or somewhere else where I'm only going to read a few pages at a time. My slow reads full of facts and curiosity, but which are just too dense to read as a whole.

Recently, however, my reading pattern has changed. You don't see all of it on GoodReads, because I've not yet added my text books to the reading list. I can't decide whether they really belong there. But...

Today, as I entered the completion of my most recent bit of fiction, I noticed a couple of things.

1. I now have a real place to keep the list of books that I want to read, but don't yet have on hand (or time for). And it's a list that I'll be able to find! So that book I want to read won't get forgotten. Alas, that list is growing very quickly. Today, I marked one book as READ, and promptly added two more TO READ. (How exactly do you count the one you've marked to read that you've already read?)

2. While it's clear that I'm reading a lot about anatomy, physiology, pathology, and massage assessment and treatment (what with studying for the National Boards and all). I hadn't realized just how much of my "down time" reading is also tied up with Massage. I'm reading massage related books for my leisure reading too? Really?

What do I mean? Well, I'm studying by re-reading, and re-note taking, and quizzing myself on the following books (feel free to skip this particular list, it's a bit of record keeping in addition to being information you might be interested in):

Massage, A Career at Your Fingertips, by Martin Ashley, JD, LMT (which was a rather pitiful book, that made me want to write a better one, but which, again, was our assigned textbook).

and of course, the official "Review Guides" for the exam itself, which do provide the same material in new ways, so that I'm "layering" the information, but which, more importantly, provide practice tests.

(Well, okay, I'm interested, but also that's reading, not studying, and since it's connected I'm hoping it will help.)

That's not to say that I'm not also reading the Biography of Water (a few pages at a time), or that I don't have a bit of fiction at my bedside for "go-to-sleep" reading, but still.

It makes me worry a bit that I'm becoming, well, a tad -- obsessed? one-dimensional? all massage all the time?

I'm hoping that this is just a sign that I'm dedicated to passing these upcoming exams, and to really deeply LEARNING all this stuff so that I will be the best massage therapist I can be. We'll check in again in, oh, mid-October after I've taken my exams.

To combat this one-sidedness, I'm considering joining my community in a thing I've just learned about. Evidently, every so often (monthly? seasonally?), the libraries (or someone) in our twin-cities get together and pick a book for the whole community to read at once. This month, it's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. It's been a long time since I've read it, and I DID just finish a novel last night... so I (cough) have room (cough) in my reading list (cough cough). I think I'll join the folks in town and read ol' Tom again.

As soon as I finish reviewing the Nervous System.

(I'm now inspired, suddenly, to see if we can have a blogiverse reading club. Anyone want to join me in reading a book, and chatting about it here?)

September 15, 2012

I have Facebook account. I use it more to chat with my friends, and do little mini-blogs sharing my thoughts or articles I've liked. (Today, I actually wished that there were a way to share things BACK to my blog from Facebook, instead of only the way to publish my blog posts to Facebook.) I like following my friends on Facebook. I do not like playing all the games etc. (translation, I've escaped the evil time sucks that Facebook so giddily applies)

I use three whole apps on Facebook: Family Tree (in which I've connected to distant cousins), Words with Friends (which sometimes becomes a bit of an obsession), and GoodReads. Luckily, GoodReads is accessible without a Facebook membership -- so you can avoid the whole issue of FaceBook and still play. (And, you can choose who gets to see what you post).

I've been inconsistent in my use of GoodReads, but last weekend I went a little overboard. I logged in two years worth of books. We will NOT discuss how long that took (nor will we make snide comments about the fact that I have a wee notebook in which I record every book I read).

It was only after I typed in all these book titles that I discovered the GoodReads app for my smart phone. That app has a wonderful tool in it that could have saved me so very much time: A BAR CODE READER!

Score

So... when I next have that frenzied need to go back and post my book reading history, I can stand at my bookshelf and scan barcodes in. I'll still have to go back to make comments, but having them already in there will be a huge time saver. At least for the books I own..... that little notebook goes back over a decade).

But why do I do this? Because I find it fun, and useful, to have a list somewhere that lets me know what I've read -- especially what I've read and LIKED (or read and didn't like). With GoodReads, not only do I have that list, but I can go back to see what I thought of a book. I can also share my opinon with folks I "friend" on GoodReads. Sharing my opinion is okay, but reading THEIR opinions about books that I'm considering reading is awesome.

And. Even if all I post is whether I disliked, liked, or loved a book, that leads GoodReads to make recommendations for me, just in case I ever come up with a week where I'm at a loss for what to read next.

September 13, 2012

Most folks who finish a course of study that was designed to prepare them for a new career wind up interviewing for jobs somewhere near the time of their graduation. But that's not what this post is about. (Yes, I have done some interviewing, but that's not the point).

I'm interviewing oils.

Why, you might ask?

Well, I'm looking forward to starting a career that requires me to USE massage
oil. Clearly, if I have to use massage oil, I'm going to have to purchase
massage oil. I got to avoid that issue throughout the learning process,
since our school provided massage oil for us. But now... well, I've
got about three massages worth of their oil in my massage oil bottle,
and at least five massages lined up to do in the next few weeks.

As with so many things in this world, massage oils are NOT all the same. And, as with so many things in this world, there are more kinds of oils and oil blends suitable for massage than anyone not in the industry is likely to imagine. Having sampled a couple of other oils over the past year, I have realized that as grateful as I am to the school for having provided it all this time, I don't really like their oil (which is more like a gel than an oil). I'm not positive, but I think they use this(Biotone Massage Gel).

So, before I go out ordering a gallon of massage oil, I thought I'd best do a bit of research. Thus: I'm interviewing oils. And lotions - since one can use either as a lubricant for the skin during massage.

The first new oil I tried was one that came free with my table: TheraPro Swedish Effleurage Oil. I like fairly well. It's lighter than the school's gel/oil, which means that it feels less greasy on the skin when you're done. Of course, it is also easier to get too much oil when you're not used to it. One of my clients has specifically indicated that she likes it much better than the school's oil.

I've also had the opportunity to try some oils used by other therapists when I trade massages with them. Among these was a scented lotion that seemed to come in "flavors" I didn't like much. Using the lotion was okay, though it was awkward for me to work with the lotion tube instead of my usual pump. My client was happy with the lotion, but I didn't like the way it felt on my hands afterwards. I'll be unlikely to choose that lotion for my own use.

Currently in my massage room waiting for my personal assessment are ten additional oils -- I was able to order a lovely sampler pack from WellSpring that included three blends A Swedish Blend, a Deep Tissue Blend, and one in the middle that they call Balanced Blend Massage Oil; and six single oil options Golden Jojoba Massage Oil (Conventional), (Sweet Almond Massage Oil, Apricot Kernel Massage Oil, Avocado Massage Oil,
Fractionated Coconut Massage Oil, and Grape Seed Massage Oil. I also have some other Apricot Kernel oil that I got last term from the local Health Food Coop, and some Sweet Almond Oil. Also in the house is some Safflower Oil, which I've heard makes a great massage oil.

See... I told you the variety was rather staggering. And you can bet that every company makes at least a few blends. We haven't even begun to entertain the ones with scents.

"(pronounced ho-ho-ba)
is actually not oil but is a liquid plant-based wax that is similar in
chemical composition to sebum, the oil our sebaceous glands secrete that
lubricates our skin and hair. This unique chemical composition means Jojoba Massage Oil seldom causes allergic reactions, making it a great substitute for nut based oils if nut allergies are a concern. Our Organic Jojoba Oil and Non-Organic Jojoba Oil
are both rich in nutrients such as vitamin E, B complex vitamins, and
the minerals silicon, chromium, copper and zinc, has anti-inflammatory
properties, and are suitable for all types of skin. Pure Jojoba Oil
also has antimicrobial properties and fights bacterial and fungal
infections, which may be due to its high iodine content. It is deeply
moisturizing, and absorbs quickly without leaving an oily residue."

I found it thicker than other oils I've used, and yet runnier than the gel from school. My client has fairly dry skin, and this absorbed very quickly, which meant that I had to use quite a bit more than I would have of the gel I've used in the past. It was fine -- but did not make me say "THIS!!! This is the oil of my dreams!" I'll keep trying until I find it (or them).

Of course, how it feels to my hands and to my client's skin, is not the only consideration. Ease of laundering is also a consideration. If it's too hard to get the oil out of the sheets, one has to both use laundry soap that's not hypoallergenic. Even that is not enough ... eventually, the oil that lingers in the sheets after laundering eventually begins to smell bad, and you have to just abandon the sheets altogether.

I anticipate that I'll wind up with a variety of oils, each of which works best with different clients.

September 11, 2012

Not long ago, I received a complaint from a shop owner about the way I'd presented the photograph of a cowl design (it was "upside down" from the way one knits it). That inspired me to update the pattern a bit -- including making it very clear that the pattern was knit from the top down.

Anyway, I showed my classmate the testing cowl that I knit to see if the design could be worked in Fingering Weight and not just DK. She loved the things the yarn did. (I didn't love it for that design, but do like it). I had frogged the cowl, not loving the yarn/pattern combo. But then I brooded over the way the yarn had worked.

And I pondered her delight in it.

And suddenly I found the need to design a cowl pattern specifically to work with this yarn. Like I've not got enough to do what with trying to finish Golf Pro's socks in record time (I was deluding myself that I can finish them for our Anniversary), studying for the NCTMBE and MBLEx, and knitting those OTHER things......

ahem.

So, I spent an inordinate amount of time trying to figure out if anyone else had done something that involved knitting on the bias in the round without seaming things. I've determined that no matter how you do it, there will be kluging* involved. Either you just up and knit it flat and seam, or Kitchener, or you do some bizarre short rowing thing (i.e. knitting flat in the middle of a round thing), or you start with a provisionally cast on, knit in the round, end with a short rowing thing, and go back to the beginning to "end" that with more short rows.

I'm kluging away here, but thing I've come up with something nice. We'll see how it plays out.

Of course, though the idea is blooming in my head, there are several things that I must do before I focus too much attention on this cowl -

1. Finish the new socks for Golf Pro. Our Anniversary was a week ago, and I've only just turned the heels. They are a tad late ... but he's forgiven me.

2. STUDY! There's this test coming up. October 5, 2012. Between now and then, I have to be sure all the stuff I learned during that lovely year of Massage School is solidly in my brain and readily accessible. I also have to brush up on some things that will be on the test but weren't ever covered in school. (Like levers... and cranio-sacral massage ... and energy work of all stripes ... and nutrition (nutrition??? yes, nutrition).

"kludge definition jargon /kluhj/ (From the old Scots "kludgie" meaning an outside toilet) A Scottish engineering term for anything added in an ad hoc (and possibly unhygenic!) manner. At some point during the Second World War, Scottish engineers met Americans and the meaning, spelling and pronunciation of kludge became confused with that of " kluge". The spelling "kludge" was apparently popularised by the "Datamation" cited below which defined it as "An ill-assorted collection of poorly matching parts, forming a distressing whole." The result of this tangled history is a mess; in 1993, many (perhaps even most) hackers pronounce the word /klooj/ but spell it "kludge" (compare the pronunciation drift of mung). Some observers consider this appropriate in view of its meaning. ["How to Design a Kludge", Jackson Granholme, Datamation, February 1962, pp. 30-31]. [ Jargon File] (1998-12-09)"

September 09, 2012

This past week, I've had to register not one, but two accounts at PearsonVue so that I can schedule my upcoming massage board exams. I freely admit that this is because I'm a somewhat mad over-achiever who needs to cover every base, and thus I have bizarrely chosen to take both of the possible exams (which I perceive as giving me more flexibility). Even so, it seems awfully silly to have to make two separate accounts to take two exams administered by the same company in the same room in the same building on the same day.

(and yes, I do think this is one more example of ways in which the folks setting things up don't think about end users).

I'm sure you're all familiar with the <sarcastic tone> lovely </sarcastic tone> feature that so many sites now have of asking you "security questions" - either to let you log on from an unfamiliar-to-them computer or to help you when you've forgotten your password. PearsonVue is no exception. They require you to answer two.

Alas, the first set of choices include a series of questions for which I have no lasting answers. Seriously. They eventually do ask a set of questions that include some that involve actual facts that are unlikely to change -- (these are paraphrases)

What is the name of the first company you were employed by?

In what city did you meet your spouse/significant other?

What is the first and last name of the best man at your wedding?

That set also included some that are not totally changeable, but that are subject to change:

What is your dream occupation? (potentially changeable over time)

What is your oldest sibling's nickname? (likely changeable - but also a question for which it is possible if not likely that multiple answers can be true simultaneously)

What is your spouse's/significant other's nickname? (again, changeable, and multiple)

But the first set of questions (so you had to pick one) and some in the second set, included that old hackneyed and useless series: What is your favorite.....

What is your favorite food?

Who is your favorite actor/musician/artist?

What was your favorite place to visit as a child?

What is your favorite song?

What is your favorite book?

What was your most memorable gift as a child?

Who is your favorite athlete?

The only question in that set that is not subject to change might have been "What is the name of your first toy animal?" But our memories blur over time. Some of us may remember a different animal at different times. Me... I'd remember Lamby (or was it Lambie? or Lammy?) but, as you can see, I have no idea how I spelled it (or, more accurately, how I would have spelled it as a 2 year old). But would I still remember Lamby if I didn't also still have Lambie?

But it's the" favorite" questions that kill me. I have no idea! I like many different actors for many different reasons. I enjoy a wide range of music, and would sit for days on end trying to narrow down a favorite. Ditto movies and books. With those, which I prefer RIGHT NOW depends on mood, time, recent events, etc. And.... with time, I change and grow, and my tastes change and grow. And the book I'm likely to like most right now is the one that is helping me grow in some way -- unless it's one that lets me take a trip down nostalgia lane.

The questions about childhood -- those also get me. I have different memories at different times. My favorite place to visit? at what age? And how do I put into one word the joy I got out of going to Louisiana to visit first one and then the other set of grandparents -- people and houses so different in so many ways, and yet so equally full of love? But wait, what about those glorious camping trips we took to Deep Springs on the Current River? And some days, it might be remembering how much fun it was to go to Papa's office, where I got to play on the HUGE chalk board as much as I wanted as long as I didn't erase any of those funny looking things called equations that were part of his work?

Sigh.

I know... concrete facts are likely to be easier for hackers to figure out, but at least they don't CHANGE over time. And requiring answers that my brain can't hold because they're changeable just means that I'll write them down somewhere... and make them easier for someone to hack.

Why not go for our grandparent's birthdays? Or their middle names? Those aren't as easy to learn from the outside, but are things we can remember.

September 07, 2012

And many folks point out that part of the problem is that here in America, we seem to put sugar in everything. I've found this to be true in what I thought were minor but anoying ways.

I've spent far too much time in the grocery aisles hunting for a simple tomato basil sauce that didn't have sugar in it. (I gave up on the marinara hunt). Even in the "whole foods aisles" I found sugar in almost all of the sauces. After diligent searching, I've found two -- one in each grocery store, that don't list sugar or some "equivalent" (like, say, high fructose corn syrup, or corn syrup) as one of the incredients.

I've spend time searching for salad dressings without sugar.

But I never expected that I'd have to start looking for SALT without sugar in it!

Yep. There it is: Dextrose.

What is dextrose? Well, I popped over to WiseGeek and found the following sentence:

"Dextrose is simply a form of glucose. Some food packagers like to use
"dextrose" on their packaging instead of "glucose" because they believe
that people have negative associations with glucose."

Of course, glucose is one of those things our body needs at least some of. But it does seem nefarious some how to be hiding it in our salt.

It's totally worth the few minutes it will take you to read that article.

September 04, 2012

The Cowl -- whether or not I frogged it, I did start it, and finished it....

and now..... more socks.

Last year, I was working on a pair of socks for Golf Pro when one of the house-brownies decided that my favorite knitting bag was awesome, and took it. The socks were in there. I still can't find the bag, or the socks. I bought yarn at Stitches to make socks for him -- but when I showed him yarn I discovered that I had lurking in my stash (and yes, I found it while looking for the cowl), he chose the stash yarn.

So now .... I've another project on the needles.

It happens.

I've gone from she who has two projects going to she who has six. How am I supposed to be studying for this exam when I have all these yummy knitting projects.

Woman to Woman -- that's waiting for it to cool down -- too heavy to work in the heat.

Climbing cables -- the needle eater (luckily those metal Kollage square needles are a match for these beasts)

September 02, 2012

We've got another 10 weeks or so before the elections, and I'm already way past done with the political fracas. Yep, it's true, I didn't even make it to the second of the Big Conventions.

I'm already offended by political ads.

I've already tired of the pundits who are wholly unable to present a balanced picture of any candidate, but are wicked good at presenting one like a paragon while presenting the other like a vindictive snake oil salesman determined to destroy the country.

And I'm past tired of receiving telephone calls promoting candidates, polling for my voting intentions, and urging me to stop by somewhere to pick up yard signs. (I'm contemplating lying to the rest of the pollsters who call -- just to skew their data).

I'd like all political ads and commentary to evaporate.

I loathe the two-party system, that keeps us from having real options in electing candidates who actually do stand for the same principals we do, but instead offer us puppets who tell us what the parties think we want to hear. I'd like to see the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, the Socialist Party and any other party whose current name I've forgotten .... all of them to be on equal footing with the Big Two in every election. I'd love to see the U.S. adopt the Australian system of Preferential Voting. That would eliminate the fear many people have of voting for their preferred candidate instead of against one of the big two.

I'm appalled that without actively searching for it, one gets no information on the cadidates for any but the Big Two parties. (Did YOU know that we have a woman running for president? Why isn't that all over the news, Facebook etc?)

I despise the system that lets huge corporations fund advertising campaigns that are designed to make us fear the other guy, and then hide behind the Party so we can't tell who is actually paying for things.

I'd like to find a way to REQUIRE every candidate for EVERY political office to honestly and completely answer an identical set of questions about their positions on a full panoply of issues, and another set of questions on their intentions -- what they will do if elected. I'd like them to be required to answer these questions without the help of their handlers, so we get the CANDIDATE's answers and not the PARTY's answers. And, I'd like these answers in writing, and posted on at least one web site so that we can all go look at them, and read them, and make reasoned choices. There is such a site, of course, but the candidates don't have to answer their questions, and often skip questions. And candidates for local offices (and even state elections) often don't answer at all. (And how do we know it's the candidates and not their handlers answering the questions?). VoteSmart used to be my favorite, but they're way behind right now. A quick google search did not yield anything useful.

But mostly, I'd like to hear not one more word from any candidate or party, or PAC, about why the other guy is a bad choice. I'd like to hear ONLY why any candidate (or supporter) thinks s/he is a GOOD choice. In short, I'd like them to quit telling me why to vote against the other guy, and start telling me why I might want to vote FOR someone.